The present invention is related to the provision of location dependent services.
A location dependent service (LDS) is provided only to service users within a particular location or area. Therefore, it is necessary to control access to such services based on the location of a user. In the case of mobile users, they may not be aware of services available in a particular location and so it is convenient to advertise the existence of the services to the user. Once a user has been made aware of a service, and has decided to activate it, a service application in the form of software might need to be downloaded into the user""s terminal. Various forms of download can be used, for example Java.
Certain wireless communications systems are divided into a plurality of individual coverage areas, sometimes referred to as cells, which are served by individual base stations or access points. In such a cellular communications network, a cell can be several kilometers across. In systems such as the GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) system, mobile telephones are tracked so that the cell in which they are currently located (that is, the cell identity or cell ID) can be identified. This is necessary in routing telephone calls.
In the case of other wireless communications systems, for example a BLUETOOTH system or a wireless local area network (WLAN), the size of individual coverage areas can be in the regions of tens of metres. The size of the coverage areas may also depend on their environment, for example they may be confined to a single room or space in a building.
A terminal in a WLAN can request a service without requiring a physical connection to it. Therefore, it has been proposed that a terminal such as a lap top computer will be able to use a service, for example a printer, which is in its vicinity. This is one way to provide an LDS. In providing these services, service discovery mechanisms such as Service Location Protocol (SLP) and Jini have been proposed.
Systems are known which are used solely for determining location. Such a system is the Global Positioning System (GPS). It has been proposed to use a GPS receiver in mobile telephones in a mobile telecommunications network for location determination. This means that the mobile telephone can be located in the event of it making emergency calls. Alternatively it can be used to provide interactive map services, for example in a navigation system. In such a system, mobile terminals are tracked and provided with information to guide a user, typically the driver of an automobile, to reach a particular location.
As the sophistication of wireless communications networks and mobile terminals increases it has been proposed to include in wireless communications systems a variety of services which can be accessed by users. The services may be location independent, for example SMS messaging and communication over WAP, or location dependent, for example services which are only available when a mobile terminal is in a particular location. An example of LDS is presentation of discounted prices to a mobile terminal user in a shop. It is possible that LDSs may be confined to areas which are smaller than the size of a coverage area of the wireless communications network. Therefore, providing a LDS to all mobile terminals in a particular coverage area may provide it over too large an area. It has been proposed that LDSs may be provided by local access points within the wireless communications network. In this way, communications may be provided over base stations and services may be provided over local access points by a communication protocol such as BLUETOOTH or WLAN.
It has been proposed to track the location of mobile terminals by a positioning system such as GPS and to provide LDSs to the terminals when they are in proximity to a particular location.
It is becoming desirable to provide services from the Internet to mobile terminals such as mobile telephones.
According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a system for providing services to at least one mobile terminal comprising:
an area containing a plurality of service locations to which services are associated, the mobile terminal being moveable within the area;
a plurality of location information sources to provide location information indicating the location of the mobile terminal;
a tracker for tracking the mobile terminal relative to the service locations so that the presence of the mobile terminal at a particular service location of a service can be determined;
a server for receiving the location information and determining whether location information from at least one source provides a basis for providing the service.
Preferably the system provides service to a plurality of mobile terminals.
The system may look at the available location information from the plurality of sources and determine that location information from one source provides the most suitable location information for a particular type of service. Using one particularly suitable type of location information provides better targeting of services.
Preferably the system applies to the location information a classification which indicates the reliability of the location information. Reliability of location information may refer to:
(i) functions making no error in obtaining, processing and forwarding location information;
(ii) its accuracy, for example its resolution; or
(iii) its trustability, that is that it does indeed come from its purported source.
Reliability may refer to all of these matters. If the location information is not reliable enough, the service may not be provided to the mobile terminal.
Preferably the server receives and classifies location information from all of the location information sources. However, it may receive and classify location information from some or even only from one location source.
Preferably there is a plurality of different types of location information sources. For example, the location information sources may comprise electronic systems for determining location or may be a user of a mobile terminal providing the information. In an embodiment in which there are electronic systems, one or more of these may comprise GPS, Time of Arrival (TOA) or Estimated Observed Time Difference (EOTD) or a combination of these. EOTD is a mechanism for determining location in a radio access network (RAN) by appropriately processing radio network measurements. Alternatively the electronic systems may determine location information based on proximity to access points. Such a system may be based on BLUETOOTH or WLAN access points.
Preferably, the system has a selector for selecting location information from one particular location information source when location information from more than one location information is available.
Preferably the system comprises a location information handler to combine location information gathered from different sources. The location information handler may convert location information presented in different forms into other forms, for example to different logical location representations of the location information and especially to human-readable forms.
Preferably the location information handler comprises a location server. The location server may comprise a network location provider. The network location provider may provide a standard interface for the location server to get location information. The location information handler may comprise a location agent. The location agent may be located in a mobile terminal. The location information handler may comprise a positioning system to be used by at least one location agent.
Preferably the system comprises means for uniquely identifying the mobile terminals.
Preferably the system defines a service deployment area where the service is offered or provided or both.
Preferably the system comprises a profiling sub-system which keeps and/or compiles profiles related to one or more of a user, a mobile terminal and a service. For example the profiles may contain information selected from terminal capabilities, such as the model, its screen size, its connection speed, user characteristics, such as the user""s gender, age and the category of user, for example whether a gold or a silver user, and preferences of the user selected list, such as expressed interest in music, clothes or electronics or other matters. The profiles may be used for comparison purposes. For example, service profiles may be compared against user and mobile terminal profiles for determine whether provision of such services to such a mobile terminal or a user is permitted or is possible. The user and mobile terminal profiles can be used to determine targeting of advertisements. Preferably, location information is used to determine targeting of services. This provides a high degree of customisation of services and advertisements.
Preferably the system comprises means for downloading of applications in mobile terminals. When activated, these applications may allow for the provision of certain services.
Since the system receives location information from a plurality of sources it provides a simplified interface for querying, thereby reducing the complexity and computing overhead of services.
The invention integrates the provision and management of services which makes it attractive for use in ISPs and network infrastructures, and with mobile terminals.
Preferably the system comprises a wireless communications system. It may comprise a cellular telephone network.
Preferably the system comprises a plurality of superimposed wireless systems. In one embodiment, there may be communications system and superimposed on it other systems. The other systems might be, for example, a positioning system such as GPS or local positioning systems in which position is determined from the ability to communicate with a local access point. The local positioning systems can also provided access points from which services may be obtained. Such an arrangement can present a series of overlapping areas in which communications and/or services are provided. In such a system, the invention is particularly useful in distinguishing the movement of mobile terminals inside such overlapping areas.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method for providing services to at least one mobile terminal comprising the steps of:
associating services with a plurality of service locations in an area the mobile terminal being moveable within the area;
providing location information from a plurality of location information sources indicating the location of the mobile terminal;
tracking the mobile terminal relative to the service locations so that the presence of the mobile terminal at a particular service location of a service can be determined;
receiving the location information and determining whether the location information from at least one source provides a basis for providing the service; and
providing the service to the mobile terminal if there is basis.
According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium having thereon:
computer executable code for defining a plurality of service locations in an area and associating services with the service locations;
computer executable code for receiving location information from a plurality of sources indicating the location of at least one mobile terminal moveable within the area;
computer executable code for tracking the mobile terminal relative to the service locations so that the presence of the mobile terminal at a particular service location can be determined;
computer executable code for determining whether the location information from at least one source provides a basis for providing the service; and
computer executable code for providing the service to the mobile terminal if there is basis.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a method for providing services to at least one mobile terminal comprising the steps of:
associating services with a plurality of service locations in an area the mobile terminal being moveable within the area;
providing location information indicating the location of the mobile terminal;
tracking the mobile terminal relative to the service locations so that the presence of the mobile terminal at a particular service location can be determined;
receiving the location information and checking profile information to select certain services to be provided to the mobile terminal;
providing a collection of the selected services to the mobile terminal so that they can be chosen by a user of the mobile terminal; and
providing services to the mobile terminal which are chosen by the user.
Preferably the profile information is a user profile, a terminal profile or a service profile. It may be a combination of any or all of these. Preferably a service profile which defines a service deployment area is checked to see if the mobile terminal is in a location suitable to receive the service.
Of course, if only one service is selected, the collection will only comprise one service.
According to a fifth aspect of the invention there is provided a mobile terminal according to any preceding aspect of the invention.